Tour of the Modern Smart Home: The Family Room

Welcome to your new home! It’s furnished with the trendiest furniture and décor and equipped with automated technology and appliances to make your day-to-day life as easy and energy-efficient as possible.

You walk up the pathway and up the front steps to your new front door. You immediately notice the video doorbell system to your left and when it detects you approaching, you receive a motion detection alert on your phone. You immediately feel safe, knowing you will be able to keep an eye on your home when you’re away and be alerted at night if there are unwanted visitors on your property.

At first, you are confused when you cannot find a lock or key to enter. But then you notice an app on your phone and with a touch of a button, you hear the door unlock for you. You step inside, pleased with the satisfaction of knowing you can control your locks and answer the doorbell from anywhere at any time.

Inside, you find yourself in your new living room. You cannot wait to enjoy time with your family there, streaming movies on the large flat screen mounted on the wall. In fact, the entertainment system looks impeccably clean and tidy. Where are all the wires connected to multiple outlets? Surely with all the required devices, you need more than just one outlet to power it all!

Ah, an Advanced Power Strip. With enough plugs provided to power even the most extravagant home theater, you breathe a sigh of relief. Not only will the APS support your entertainment center, but it will also save you money while doing so. You know how much of a drain advanced systems like this can be and you’ve heard about how even when the devices are off, they can still pull power from the outlets. How wonderful to see the APS working for you to block Vampire Power, protect your devices, and help you save energy.

You hear the air conditioning turn off and it draws your attention to the thermostat across the room.  You are pleasantly surprised to see a smart thermostat installed, its sleek design smiling at you from the wall. As you approach it, you see the symbol indicating you are being energy-efficient and it makes you proud. With one glance at the clock, you see that it is peak hours for energy and are grateful for opting-in on the Demand Response program, which allows your utility to raise the temperature on your thermostat to help save energy during hours when most are using it. You don’t mind pulling back on your usage during this period, especially since you received a handsome discount because of it!

The smart thermostat will do even more for you on a daily basis. It will learn your habits and preferences and soon control itself to suit your lifestyle. Alternatively, you can create a set schedule and rest assured it will follow your commands with ease. It will also let you know what settings will be most energy-efficient. You appreciate the smart thermostat’s accompanying app as well. You’ll have the ability to change the settings from anywhere and don’t have to worry about accidentally leaving the AC on when you’re on vacation or forgetting to turn the heat down during colder months when you leave for work.

You take a seat on your new couch, taking a deep breath and smiling as you exhale. You feel right at home but, most importantly, very energy-efficient and safe.

This post is the first of a 3 part series. Stay tuned for more to come!